The Hefty Holidays

This week begins the onslaught of holiday happiness.  With the arrival of Thanksgiving our calendars are about to get booked, our debit cards are about to get charged, and our days are about to get a little bit merrier.  This time of year also means an endless stream of dinners, parties, and baked goods.  Many people fear the holidays will derail their efforts to get fit.  After all, doesn’t everybody gain weight during the Thanksgiving and Christmas?  Not necessarily…

According to the American Dietetic Association, the average American only gains about one pound during the holiday season.  There are some Americans that gain much more than that, but weight gain is not the certain destiny of each person simply because there are increased opportunities to eat yourself silly.  Whether or not you agree with the research that went into those statistics, it does point us to an important truth… You do not have to fall off the wagon in reaching your fitness goals during “the most wonderful time of the year.”

Here are a few tips to help you think about staying on track during the next few weeks.

1. Pre-Count Calories.  This is where you have to get proactive with your food intake.  Many people use calorie counting reactively, counting after the food has been consumed.  This can be a helpful practice if you are in your normal environment and routine, but this often goes out the window during the holiday season.  Often you can know what kinds of foods to expect at a Thanksgiving dinner or holiday party.  By counting your calories ahead of time, you are giving yourself some boundaries to help you stay on track.

2. Know when to put down the fork.  Just because the spread includes every food item imaginable doesn’t mean you have to eat it all.  Choose to eat your food a little more slowly during meal times at special events.  This gives your body time to let you know when it is satisfied.  Try not to eat to the point of feeling overfull or sick. 

3. SPLURGE (kinda) There will be host of holiday treats to choose from.  Its okay to eat those special treats, just not 5 of them.  Choose the one or two things that you really want to enjoy and stick to those choices.  It doing so, you are not denying yourself some of the things that make these kinds of gatherings special, but you are not overdoing it either.

There are other strategies out there.  Upping your exercise during the months of November and December to burn off excess calories is one way to do it.  Losing some additional weight coming into the season to off-set any gain is another possibility.  The point is to find a way to maintain your fitness goals so you don’t reach January in a state of regret.